Humanism is an approach to life that embraces reality and reasoned deliberation over fantasy and faith. Humanists live in the here and now with an awareness of history and eye toward the future. And humanists operate under the precept that we have an ethical responsibility to take care of one another. This often gives Humanists a considerably different perspective on things than some of the religiously inclined who see this world as a mere way-station on their journey to Heaven or Hell and thus have no qualms about outsourcing their ethics to whichever ancient holy book their parents happened to subscribe to.
Below is a link to the most recent version of the Humanist Manifesto as put forth by the American Humanist Association: